19: Cookies/Cake/Gingerbread: Dawn and Scott

Dawn was not a domestic woman, but she knew her way around the kitchen. She found comfort in nature, especially with animals, yet she loved the smell of rising dough and icing sugar early in the morning. It was something she and her mother shared, the only things, and that was why every winter, Dawn would draw up a list of treats to keep her busy. It was easier at home because she had her mother to rile her up and help her pick recipes. They worked together at the mixing, measuring, kneading, cutting, and icing. It was one of the only times the women got along without a screaming match taking place. Well, her mother would scream. Dawn would just give her a blank stare and hope the noise would stop soon.

It was a relief when Dawn moved out into Scott's after they graduated. Finally, she had nature at her fingertips and a serene environment that made meditating that much easier. Her mother criticized the choice, saying it wasn't proper for a young lady like Dawn to "shack up" with a "delinquent" but Dawn didn't listen. She had never listened to her mother since she was a child. Why would she start now? Her father made no comment on the subject. He was a passive man; if something bothered him, you'd never know because he wouldn't mention it. He would simply read the paper or one of his books and pretend the problem didn't exist. He never outright said he disproved, but Dawn knew he didn't want her to go.

They didn't understand her need to leave though. They thought it was just because she was in love and yeah, that was part of it, but she wanted to leave before she met Scott. He was just her way out, along with the love of her life. Dawn never liked the idea of college or a 9-5 job. It was too constricting, too mundane. She wanted a chance to do what she loved with the people she loved, and Scott gave her that opportunity when he and his pappy let her move in.

It took getting used to though. Pappy was a man set in his ways, and it was unlikely Dawn would change him overnight. Yet she was determined to bring a little brightness, a little order to the place. The lodge was finely crafted by Pappy's own hands and outside it was well taken care of. But with two bachelors inside, the place had slipped just a bit. Dawn set that to rights as soon as she moved in. She started off small by requesting the dishes be done once a day at least. She pointed out the smell and they had to agree. Next, she moved on the laundry. Once a week it would be done by one person, didn't matter which, and one person didn't do it two weeks in a row, just to make it fair. Pappy hated laundry, but Scott was open to the process, mainly because he didn't mind folding, not that he would admit that to anyone. Dawn only knew because she caught him listening to his records as he folded and he was actually smiling.

Dawn came up with a meal system. Breakfast and lunch were fend-for-yourself meals, but supper all three sat down together and ate together. Scott or Dawn usually cooked, but Pappy liked to pull out the barbeque and fry up a steak or three, so they didn't complain when he took over.

To her credit, the place was a lot cleaner once she moved it. She never said anything about it, but once they noticed her tidying up on Saturdays, they pitched in during the week. For two men who hadn't been around a woman in years, they were both quite accommodating. As a thank you, Dawn did her fair share of work outside. Since the acreage was how the family made their money, she knew how important harvest season was as well as gathering eggs and other daily chores that needed to be done on the property. She realized early on that spending as little money as possible was necessary, so Dawn planted a vegetable garden that she planned to continue every year. That would save on unnecessary spending for sure. That and she liked to get her hands dirty.

As the months went on, she noticed how happy Scott was. He wasn't carrying the chip on his shoulder, or if he was, he hid it well. While they did argue, he was almost always the first to apologize. Around his pappy he was a complete gentleman to her, not that he wasn't at other times, but it was more noticeable when the older, bearded man was around. Dawn suspected Pappy had something to do with it, but she didn't comment. She learned not to make a big deal of changes, for that might scare them. It was best to appreciate them silently, as that was its own language in the house.

Now it was winter, and Dawn began preparing for her first big baking session for the year. She brought all her books from home and spread them out on the table. She stocked up on ingredients the day before and now was ready to bake up a storm.

Once the decisions were made, she pulled out bowls, spatulas, cookie cutters, whisks, measuring cups, and lots of pans. Dawn started her first creation, the one that would take the longest: cheesecake.

By the time Pappy woke up from his afternoon nap and Scott came inside from doing the morning chores, Dawn was covered in flower, sprinkles, and bits of icing sugar. The apron was practically useless as it covered her green turtleneck and sweat pants, but she wiped her hands good naturedly on the material as Scott stared at her in confusion.

"D, what are you doin'?"

Dawn looked at the counters which were covered in baking and she smiled. "Just doing my yearly tradition of baking. Want to try a shortbread cookie?" She handed him one shaped like a tree and he reluctantly grasped it in his chapped hands.

"I'm not much of a cookie person," he tried to get rid of it but she shook her head, watching as he ate it. It took him all of one second to fall in love with her baking.

"What else did you make?"

Dawn listed off the angel food cake, cheesecake, coffee cake, chocolate chip cookies, shortbread, gingerbread men, powdered donuts, and sugar cookies. Scott's jaw was hanging by its hinges by the end and she noticed a puddle of droll forming at his booted feet. "How many did you make?"

"Oh, about three dozen each," she commented with a shrug.

"And you did this in a couple of hours?"

Dawn nodded. "I got up at six and it's lunch time so . . . yes I suppose. I hope I didn't do anything wrong. It's just a tradition of mine and I figured you wouldn't-" her explanation was stopped with a kiss. Scott tasted like shortbread and sprinkles, and as her hands rested on his snowy shoulders, she thought this must be what Christmas tasted like. Scott's arms weaved around her waist and the baking was momentarily forgotten.

Neither noticed Pappy around the corner with a grin and gingerbread man in hand. He'd have to ask Dawn to make more of these, for they'd be gone soon enough once he and his grandson really got into them.